Lord Astor of Hever: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How provisos on the operational capabilityof the Bowman Combat Infrastructure Platform Programme are managed within the Ministry of Defence's contract with General Dynamics UK.

Lord Astor of Hever: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What work is ongoing to simplify the useof the Bowman Combat Infrastructure Platform Programme for service personnel.

Lord Astor of Hever: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What progress the Ministry of Defence has made in developing a built-in through life support system for the Bowman Combat Infrastructure Platform Programme.

Lord Drayson: The department has an incremental improvement strategy towards Bowman Combat Infrastructure and Platform support that is compliant with current and emerging support policy while meeting the needs of the front line. The intention is to develop a long-term through life support solution.

Lord Astor of Hever: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What lessons the Ministry of Defence haslearnt from the use of the Bowman Combat Infrastructure Platform Programme in Iraq and Afghanistan that will inform its final acceptance of the system from the contractor.

Lord Astor of Hever: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the Ministry of Defence is awareof any incompatibility with VHF transmissions using Bowman and electronic counter measures equipment.

Lord Drayson: Identified trends in illegal drug taking in the Armed Forces are:
	Rates of positive tests for the Army initially fell during the first two years when random tests were introduced (from 1.4 per cent in 1995 to 0.7 per cent in 1996). More recently, positive results for the Armed Forces overall have fluctuated but increased from0.53 per cent in 2000 to 0.65 per cent in 2006.
	The misuse of class A drugs has risen for each of the services and increased for the Armed Forces as a whole from 42.5 per cent of positive results in 2000 to 56.9 per cent in 2006.
	Further information is shown in the table below:
	
		
			  2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 
			 Royal Navy: 
			 Positive rates among those tested 0.35% 0.39% 0.33% 0.41% 0.39% 0.37% 0.46% 
			 Percentages of positives which were class A 55.3% 44.0% 30.2% 62.5% 55.3% 76.6% 79.0% 
			 Army: 
			 Positive rates among those tested 0.59% 0.65% 0.58% 0.56% 0.69% 0.83% 0.74% 
			 Percentages of positives which were class A 41.2% 49.5% 46.5% 47.0% 37.2% 61.2% 55.0% 
			 Royal Air Force: 
			 Positive rates among those tested 0.12% 0.13% 0.09% 0.15% 0.21% 0.16% 0.14% 
			 Percentages of positives which were class A 35.7% 39.0% 30.0% 20.0% 45.8% 57.1% 66.7% 
			 Armed Forces overall:
			 Positive rates among those tested 0.53% 0.57% 0.50% 0.49% 0.61% 0.71% 0.65% 
			 Percentages of positives which were class A 42.5% 48.8% 45.0% 47.5% 38.7% 62.0% 56.9%

Lord Astor of Hever: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What lessons for the through life capability management concept the Ministry of Defence has learnt from the Bowman Combat Infrastructure Platform Programme.

Lord Drayson: The department is implementing the through life capability management model across defence as one of the key elements of the Defence Acquisition Change Programme. The specific question of through life management issues relating to complex new systems such as supporting Bowman Combat Infrastructure Platform was included in the conclusions and recommendations of the Committee of Public Accounts report Delivering digital tactical communications through the Bowman CIP Programme published on 8 March 2007. The Government will respond to the committee in a Treasury minute shortly.

Lord Rooker: The Smithsonian Folklife Festivalis a professionally curated, outdoor exhibit of ethnography demonstrating living cultural traditions as practised in contemporary society. The Northern Ireland programme on the National Mall is jointly funded between the NI Administration and the Smithsonian Institution. It is anticipated that the total costs of mounting the NI exhibit on the Mall will be in the region of £1,252,998 of which NI's share of the costs will be approximately £789,000. This will be partly underwritten by private sector sponsorship.

Lord Rooker: The Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure works in partnership with the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the British Council to showcase artists and arts organisations from Northern Ireland at international events.
	In addition to the Smithsonian Institution Folklife Festival which will run from 27 June to 8 July 2007, events supported over the last year and those planned for 2007 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			 April 2006 Brian Irvine Ensemble visit to Moscow 
			 April/May 2006 Literature and Music Festival, New York 
			 July 2006 - July 2007 NI Performance Arts Festival, Romania 
			 August 2006 Edinburgh Literature Bookfair 
			 September 2006 - January 2007 NI Video Art in Mexico 
			 2006 - 2007 Czech Showcase of Northern Ireland Arts 
			 March 2007 New York Bands Showcase 
			 March - July 2007 Re-Discover Northern Ireland, Washington DC 
			 March - June 2007 Belfast and Palestinian Visual Arts Exchange 
			 June - November 2007 Northern Ireland exhibition at Venice Biennale 
			 Ongoing Forum Theatre—NI theatre practitioners working in Georgia and Armenia 
			 Note: Some events are funded solely by the British Council

Lord Rooker: Her Majesty's Government define the phrase "parity of esteem" with reference to its meaning in the Belfast agreement to signify equal respect for the identity, ethos and aspirations ofboth communities in Northern Ireland. The term "equality" appears in a number of parts of the Belfast agreement and therefore must be interpreted within those contexts accordingly.

Lord Truscott: It is difficult to calculate average costs for handling claims as the costs we pay to contractors are not activity-based. However, indicative average costsas at 31 March 2007 are approximately £3,500 for respiratory disease and £2,600 for vibration white finger.

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether a requirement for applicants for a position or post to have a detailed knowledgeof Irish or Ulster Scots complies with equality requirements; and
	Why the Northern Ireland Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure required applicant interviews to a position for civil servants, advertised in a memorandum entitled interchange opportunity IC14/07 dated 8 March 2007 from the Social Security Agency, to be carried out in Irish.

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the Northern Ireland Departmentof Culture, Arts and Leisure has an equal opportunity policy for recruitment; and whether any individuals have been recruited by that department as a result of interviews conductedin Irish.

Lord Marlesford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by Lord McKenzie of Luton on 29 March (HL2934), how many (a) national insurance contributions, and (b) benefit payments were made during 2006 in respect of the approximately 76 million national insurance numbers held on the customer information system of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Baroness Ashton of Upholland: The table below provides information on money recovered, costs and imprisonments in relation to the three iterations of Operation Payback to date. Statistics relating to enforcement fees and arrests were not collected as part of the evaluation exercises.
	
		
			 Statistics from Operation Payback Evaluation Reports 
			  Money recovered during the week(s) of the Operation1 Total collected attributable to Payback (including pre-Payback activities, cash collected during Payback, legally cancelled during Payback and value of fines served through imprisonment)2 Costs (production and distribution of publicity)3 Number of defaulters detained in court (i.e. to serve a one-day sentence)4 Number of defaulters imprisoned for more than one day4 
			 Operation Payback (w/c 22 March 2004)5 £631,298 £750,000 £230,000 31 36 
			 Operation Payback 2 (6-14 November 2004)5 £1,320,703 £1,766,876 £292,000 146 168 
			 Operation Payback 3 (15-23 October 2005)5 £1,413,112 £2,098,000 £300,000 11 306 
		
	
	1 It is not possible to separate out figures relating specifically to enforcement fees
	2 It is not possible to identify figures relating to money recovered post-Payback specifically attributable to Payback activity
	3 Each area funded Payback activity fromexisting resources, HMCS/DCA only provided central funding for the accompanying national press campaigns
	4 Numbers of defaulters arrested during or following Operation Paybacks are not available. Some defaulters were detained in court to serve a one-day sentence (i.e. the defaulter was required to remain in court until the court rose).
	5 Some areas ran Payback on different dates due to operational reasons (e.g. clashes with Inside Justice Week)

Lord Truscott: The Government want to see access to free, impartial debt advice for all who need it. We are spending£47.5 million on rolling out face-to-face debt advice for the financially excluded. This will fund the recruitment and training of more than 500 new advisers. These will help tens of thousands of consumers to make informed choices on how to handle their debt problems. We have also helped fund the National Debtline, which is now able to provide telephone advice to more than 120,000 clients.
	Providers of debt consolidation must be licensed under the Consumer Credit Act 1974. The Consumer Credit Act 2006 provides the Office of Fair Trading with new powers to take action where licensees do not meet the necessary standards. It also enables borrowers to challenge a credit relationship which is unfair. In addition, legislation provides for protection against misleading advertisements and against fraud.

Lord Davies of Oldham: On 30 October 2005 the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport attended a private dinner hosted by Matthew Freud at which guests included Philip Anschutz and another representative of Anschutz Entertainment Group.
	On 31 October 2005, the Minister for Sport, and officials, attended a dinner hosted by Lord Heseltine at which Philip Anschutz was present.
	Details of these meetings were previously provided in the Answer of 20 December 2005 (Official Report, cols. 2654W-2656W) to the honourable Memberfor North-East Cambridgeshire (Mr Moss) and inthe Answer of 17 July 2006 (Official Report,cols. 94W-95W) to the honourable Member for East Devon (Mr Swire).

Lord Davies of Oldham: The Department for Communities and Local Government brings together responsibilities from across government for social cohesion and equality, recognising the importance of equality across government and the necessity of collaboration in delivery. There is a natural synergy between matters of equality and the way we livein our communities. In taking forward these responsibilities, the Department for Communities and Local Government has a wider role as a champion of equality across government, in close liaison with the Department for Work and Pensions, which has lead responsibility for policy on disability and age equality policy because of the close links with welfare reform and pensions, and the Department of Trade and Industry, with its responsibilities in the field of employment.

Lord Morrow: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	In the past two years in Northern Ireland,how many firearms certificates have been refused renewal; how many firearms certificates havebeen renewed; and, of those individuals whose certificates have been refused, how many have no criminal convictions.

Lord Dykes: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will seek agreement by United Kingdom supermarkets and food producers ona standard identical format for front-of-pack nutritional data which is comprehensible to consumers.

Lord Drayson: Records from the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency show that the term Gulf War syndrome, which includes the umbrella term Gulf War syndrome, has been used by the PensionsAppeal Tribunal in allowing the appeals of some30 individuals. This figure has been rounded to the nearest five for data protection purposes and to reflect the level of accuracy associated with data obtained from administrative systems.

Earl Howe: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 7 March (WA 54), when they next propose to meet with the Governments of (a) Jersey, and (b) Guernsey to determine the extent to which the European Union legislation governing the composition, presentation and marketing of food supplements and herbal remedies applies to them; and
	Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 7 March (WA 56), when officials from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency last met with the Governments of (a) Jersey, and (b) Guernsey as part of their ongoing dialogue to control the marketing of illegal products; and when they next plan to meet.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: Both Guernsey and Jersey have indicated their willingness to apply relevant European Union legislation. In the mean time, no meetings have yet been deemed necessary.
	Officials from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), an executive agency of the department, met officials from the Government of Guernsey on 17 December 2003. The MHRA has had no meetings with the Government of Jersey. Following the MHRA's assessment of the current consultation exercise of the Government of Guernsey on medicines legislation, the MHRA will be writing to the Governments of both Guernsey and Jersey asking for meetings.

The Countess of Mar: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they have any proposals to closethe three National Health Service homeopathic hospitals in London, Bristol and Tunbridge Wells and the specialist centre in Liverpool; and, if not, whether, and how, funding for these hospitals will be maintained.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: Cases of tetanus and deaths from tetanus for the United Kingdom, are given in the following table, with data for cases involving people aged 65 and over in brackets.
	
		
			 Year Cases in the UKCases in people >65 (-) Deaths in the UK 
			 1987 16 (9) 3 
			 1988 16 (6) 6 
			 1989 21 (10) 5 
			 1990 13 (7) 1 
			 1991 11 (7) 5 
			 1992 11 (5) 3 
			 1993 11 (7) 4 
			 1994 5 (2) — 
			 1995 6 (3) 1 
			 1996 9 (5) 1 
			 1997 8 (6) 2 
			 1998 9 (3) 2 
			 1999 4 (3) 1 
			 2000 2 (--) 1 
			 2001 6 (3) — 
			 2002 7 (4) 1 
			 2003 14 (2) 1 
			 2004 23 (2) 1 
			 2005 9 (2) — 
			 2006 3 (1)* — 
		
	
	Data have been compiled from laboratory reports, notifications and clinically diagnosed cases.
	Relating to people aged 60 and over: Data cannot be provided separately. Data are provided by standard age groups and it is not possible to provide data by non-standard age groups. The data in brackets provide the number of cases for people 65 years and over—the nearest standard age group.
	Notes: *provisional

Lord Rooker: InterTradeIreland was established in December 1999 and was staffed initially through the temporary secondment of civil servants from government departments, North and South. The information set out in the following table relatesto the religious make-up of InterTradeIreland employees recruited to permanent posts through open competition starting in October 2000.
	
		
			  Number of staff Roman Catholic Protestant Non- Determined 
			 1 January 2001 1 1 0 0 
			 1 January 2002 25 23 2 0 
			 1 January 2003 34 27 7 0 
			 1 January 2004 40 33 7 0 
			 1 January 2005 38 31 6 1 
			 1 January 2006 39 32 6 1 
			 1 January 2007 40 33 6 1

Lord Rooker: I refer the noble Lord to my previous answer dated 14 March 2007 (Official Reportcol. WA133) and wish to advise the noble Lord that the Government base their assessments on the Independent Monitoring Commission's reports.
	In their statement of 28 July 2005 the Provisional Irish Republican Army ordered an end to the armed campaign and committed to an exclusively peaceful and political path.
	This commitment has been borne out by the IMC's 14th report, which concludes that the Provisional IRA's "operational structures have been disbanded" and that it has abandoned terrorism and violence and is "firmly committed to the political path".

Baroness Amos: We are in close touch with our international partners and aid agencies regarding the situation for displaced Iraqis both within Iraq and in neighbouring countries. We have regular meetings with UN agencies, in particular the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), and the International Red Cross.
	In January, UNHCR launched a $60 million appeal to address the influx of refugees into Iraq's neighbouring countries, of Syria and Jordan and the plight of displaced people inside Iraq (this is over50 per cent funded). The money will go towards the provision of basic services and protection for internally displaced Iraqis and refugees, registration, and needs assessments. DfID has contributed£1.5 million to this appeal, part of £10 million that we have spent on humanitarian assistance in 2007. Inside Iraq, our support is providing urgently needed medical supplies, improved health facilities and restoring water and sanitation infrastructure.
	Neither Kuwait nor Saudi Arabia are signatories to the 1951 refugee convention or its 1967 protocol. While promoting accession to the 1951 convention, UNHCR is working to strengthen both countries' adherence to the principles of refugee law, to improve protection and to advocate for the introduction of domestic asylum legislation. Thus its role for Iraqi refugees is one of monitoring and lobbying for protection rather than direct assistance.
	Under the auspices of UNHCR, a meeting of international partners, including the US, UN agencies, representatives from regional governments and donor representatives will take place in Geneva on 17 April to discuss the caseload of refugees in the region and to agree the best ways to respond. We are part of this process and continue to monitor the situation closely.

Lord Dubs: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How much of the total criminal legal aid budget for the latest 12-month period for which figuresare available was spent on (a) cases set down for40 days or longer, and (b) all other cases.

Baroness Ashton of Upholland: Crown Court cases expected to last 41 days or more are administered under the Very High Cost Case scheme by the Legal Services Commission. Therefore, expenditure on cases set down to last 40 days or more is not available. The latest figures available show that, during 2005-06, expenditure on cases expected to last for 41 days or longer was £103 million. However, not all those cases would have necessarily lasted 41 days or more in practice. Additionally, there are some residual cases lasting between 25 and 40 days from a previous scheme which are included in the figure for the Very High Cost Case scheme.
	The latest figures available (2005-06) show that expenditure on all other Crown Court cases is£592 million. Those figures could include payments for cases that were not expected to last more than40 days but did. A further £284 million was also spent on representation in magistrates' courts.
	All the figures above are in cash terms. Figures for 2006-07 will be available in July 2007.

Baroness Ashton of Upholland: During 2005-06,the latest year for which figures are available, the expenditure on criminal matters through the criminal defence service scheme is set out in the table below.
	
		
			 Criminal defence service 2005-06 £m net cash 
			 Criminal magistrates' court 284 
			 Criminal legal help 11 
			 Court duty solicitor scheme 21 
			 Police stations scheme 174 
			 File review 4 
			 Public defender service 4 
			 First Assist police station phone service 3 
			 Crown Court & above 695 
			 Total criminal defence service spend 1197 
		
	
	During the same period, the expenditure on civil matters through the Community Legal Service scheme is set out below.
	
		
			 Community Legal Service 2005-06 £m net cash 
			 Family representation 471 
			 Civil non-family representation 76 
			 Immigration representation 5 
			 Family legal help 65 
			 Civil non-family legal help 117 
			 Immigration legal help 97 
			 Total Community Legal Service spend 831 
		
	
	Figures for 2006-07 are expected to be available by July 2007.

Lord Rooker: Annex B of the agreement atSt Andrews confirms the Government's commitment that the temporary 50:50 arrangements for recruitment to the PSNI will lapse when Patten's target for Catholic officers has been achieved.

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What process is used in Northern Ireland to decide whether prisoners receive parole; whois involved in this process; who makes the final decision; and whether that person takes responsibility for that decision.

Lord Rooker: The Northern Ireland Prison Service operates a pre-release home and resettlement leave scheme which facilitates sentenced prisoners to apply for periods of temporary release during the last12 months of their sentence. Pre-release leave is not an entitlement, but a privilege to be earned. The underlying principles are as follows:
	the decision on whether to grant leave is critically dependent on the outcome of a risk assessment. This will assess the risk of harm/danger to others, the risk of reoffending and/or engaging in illegal activity on release, the likelihood of absconding and whether the conditions of release will be honoured;the decision on whether to grant leave must take account of evidence of behaviour while in custody, including behaviour on previous periods of pre-release leave and/or compassionate bail, and of whether effective use is being made of time in prison. For example, this could be reflectedby attendance at resettlement and reoffending programmes offered and/or by pursuit of educational and other constructive activities; every period of leave applied for takes account ofa prisoner's pursuit of a resettlement plan. Leave taken should be relevant and structured to complement reintegration and resettlement; the amount of leave for determinate sentenced prisoners, where granted, is governed by the length of time continuously in custody; leave for life sentenced prisoners will vary, subject to a yearly maximum, to complement the agreed release programmes;leave is subject to specified conditions signed up to by the prisoner prior to a period of release; for example, return to prison, conduct self in a lawful manner, no alcohol or drugs, no contact with victims; and victims' interests, where the victim has registered with the Victim Information Scheme, are considered in the decision on whether to grant leave and in the conditions specified where leave is granted.
	The decision to release prisoners under this scheme has been delegated to dedicated local prison Home Leave and Resettlement Boards. Home LeaveBoards are multidisciplinary and are comprisedof representatives from the security, probation, resettlement, psychology departments, the prisoner's residential location, and if appropriate the multi-agency strategy risk assessment management team (MASRAM—relating to sex offenders). The board is chaired by a nominated prison governor, on behalf of the governing governor*. Home Leave Boards convene weekly to consider applications made by prisoners for home or resettlement leave. Prisoners on occasions are permitted to appear before the board.
	The final decision to release a prisoner or otherwise is taken by the Home Leave Board chairperson after full and careful deliberation by the board members of all relevant factors pertaining to the application. The board is also required by the Human Rights Act 1998 to give effect to the rights enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
	Ultimately the governing governor of the prison takes responsibility for the decisions of the Home Leave Boards. The governing governor and his deputy have the right to overturn any decision(s) made by the board.
	The Prison Service also operates a compassionate temporary release and home visits scheme for prisoners to visit close family relations who may be critically and/or terminally ill. The same consideration will apply.
	* The governing governor is the overall governor in charge of the prison.

Lord Rooker: Before a Northern Ireland prisoner is temporarily released from prison custody he/she must agree to the conditions of his/her release.
	All prisoners who have breached pre-release home or resettlement leave conditions, on returning to prison, are charged with an offence under prison rules where there is prime facie evidence to support a charge. The prisoner is then adjudicated on by a governor during a disciplinary hearing. If found guilty of breaching prison rules, the prisonerwill be the subject of an adjudication award(s). Adjudications awards range from a maximum of14 days' cellular confinement, to loss of association with other prisoners, to loss of prison earnings. In addition to cellular confinement there are other losses of privileges for varying time periods.
	Since summer 2002, following a European Court ruling, an adjudicating governor no longer has the power to increase a prisoner's sentence by awarding loss of remission. However, on returning to prison the prisoner's release date is recalculated and extended by the length of time the prisoner has been unlawfully at large.
	Where prisoners have absconded and failed to return to prison by the designated date and time the adjudicating governor may decide to deal with the matter internally or can adjourn the hearing and refer the matter to the PSNI for investigation and consideration for prosecution. The matter is referred under the provisions of Section 25 of the Prison Act, which carries a maximum penalty of two years' imprisonment for the offence of being unlawfully at large while under sentence. The Prison Service has a memorandum of understanding with the PSNI and PPSNI that any prisoner, who has absconded for a substantial period of time, normally over eight weeks, can be considered for prosecution. The majority of cases are dealt with internally by the Prison Service under the adjudication process without recourse to the PSNI and PPSNI. Resorting to the courts has rarely resulted in a fresh sentence.
	Finally, each individual prisoner's pre-release and resettlement leave quotas under the pre-release home and resettlement scheme are based on the length of sentence and continuous custody. If a prisoner breaks continuous custody by remaining outwith the prison unlawfully for an entire calendar day or more, the prisoner will have been deemed to have broken continuous custody. As a result the prisoner's entitlement to pre-release and resettlement leave will be recalculated from the day on which he returns to prison, and consequently his home leave quotas will significantly reduce.
	In any fresh application for home or resettlement leave, account is taken of any previous leavefailures by the Home Leave Board as part of its consideration.

Lord Rooker: The number of prisoners who failed to return is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Year Number of Prisoners who failed to return to prison following a period of Compassionate Temporary Release 
			 2001 0 
			 2002 9 
			 2003 5 
			 2004 7 
			 2005 2 
			 2006 3 
			 2007 to present 1 
		
	
	The statistics requested were not collated in the format required prior to 2001.
	Of the above, one prisoner remains unlawfully at large, 14 were returned to prison by the PSNI,11 returned of their own accord and one prisoner died while still unlawfully at large.

Lord Rooker: The chief executive of Roads Service (Dr Malcolm McKibbin) has been asked to write to the noble Lord in response to these questions.
	Letter from Dr Malcolm McKibbin to Lord Laird, dated April 2007.
	You recently asked Her Majesty's Government two Parliamentary Questions regarding:
	i. whether they have any evidence that illegal waste from the Republic of Ireland is being deposited under the carriageway which is currently being constructed between Newry and Dundalk; and, if not, whether they will carry out tests to verify whether such dumping has taken place.; and
	ii. what are the security arrangements for guarding the carriageway currently under construction between Newry and Dundalk during the hours of darkness.
	As this issue falls within my responsibility as chief executive of Roads Service, I have been asked to reply.
	I can advise that neither Roads Service, our technical advisors, who are monitoring the construction of the A1 Cloghogue to the border dual carriageway (part of the A1/N1 Newry to Dundalk link road), nor the contractor, have any evidence that illegal waste from the Republic of Ireland is being deposited under the carriageway currently being constructed. Therefore, in the absence of any evidence that might indicate the location where such waste may have been deposited, I regret that I am unable to justify the significant costs of carrying out tests along the 4.5 km stretch of the road scheme located within Northern Ireland, to investigate whether such dumping has taken place.
	However, I can advise that the new dual carriageway is being constructed through the site of a rubbish tip in an old quarry at Mount Pleasant in County Louth, in the Republic of Ireland. I am advised that the material that is below the footprint of the road at this location is being processed on site. This is in line with current good practice and in consultation with Louth County Council (the client for the section of the road scheme south of the border, and the local authority with responsibility for matters relating to waste). While suitable material arising from this process is being incorporated in the works south of the border, unsuitable waste material is being removed to a licensed land fill site in County Louth.
	As regards the security arrangements for the dual carriageway construction site between Newry and Dundalk, I should advise that, while Roads Service's technical advisors are on site monitoring the construction, this is not normally during the hours of darkness. Security of the site is primarily a matter for the contractor, and in this respect the contractor advises that the site is secured at the end of each day and security personnel are engaged to patrol during the hours of darkness.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Government have no plans to reduce the size of road traffic signs generally. Road traffic signs must either meet the requirements of the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2002, or be authorised by the Secretary of State. Signs indicating a prohibition of motor vehicles are already prescribed in a wide range of sizes. While signs should not be intrusive, they must be conspicuous in order to be effective.
	Decisions about the placing of road traffic signsat particular locations are the responsibility ofthe relevant traffic authority. It would be for the authority to seek special authorisation, if it is considered that there are special circumstances that justify an exceptionally small sign. The merits of any such application would be considered on a case by case basis.

Lord Rooker: Rowallane Integrated College operates as an independent school and as such does not receive funding from the Department of Education. The department does not have an assessment of the level of funding for the school.A development proposal for the school to becomea grant-maintained school was published for consultation in September 2006 and turned down in January this year. All proposals are considered carefully on their merits.

Lord Rooker: The process of creating proposals for the introduction of sports grounds-related public order legislation began in January 2005. Officials from the Department of Culture Arts and Leisure and the Northern Ireland Office took part in this process. No consultation has yet taken place, but there have been exploratory discussions with the Police Service of Northern Ireland, the Sports Council for Northern Ireland and governing bodiesof sports likely to be affected. The process is not complete as Ministers are still considering the proposals.

Lord Rooker: The Government are considering providing substantial funding for a multi-sports Stadium sited only at the Maze/Long Kesh. No other location in Northern Ireland, including Belfast, is capable of satisfying the Government's key requirements for a multi-sports stadium.

Lord Rooker: In light of the historic agreement between the DUP and Sinn Fein to enter into power sharing government together from 8 May, the Government introduced legislation to modify the deadline of 26 March for the restoration of devolution as provided for under the Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006.
	The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) (No. 2) Act 2007, which received Royal Assent on27 March 2007, set the new deadline for restoration as 8 May 2007.

Baroness Amos: Humanitarian agencies in Darfur are strugglingto deliver vital aid in exceptionally difficult circumstances. The main challenges facing agencies are attacks and banditry, and bureaucratic impediments and harassment by the Government of Sudan. I am encouraged that the concerted lobbying by the UN, UK and others has brought about the joint UN-Government of Sudan communiqué issued on 28 March. This represents an important step forward, undertaking to ease the administrative constraints on humanitarian agencies and reaffirming the Government's commitment to supporting the work, and respecting the neutrality and independence, of humanitarian agencies.
	In order to monitor the implementation of the communiqué, a committee has been set up to be co-chaired by the UN and Government of Sudan and includes representatives of the non-government organisations and three observers from the African Union, the Arab League and the donor community. The first meeting will be held in mid-April and we look to this mechanism to ensure that the Government live up to their commitments.

Lord Rooker: The NITB is working to complete a cultural tourism action plan which will address best practice in the successful delivery of integrated, sustainable cultural tourism including Ulster Scots. The NITB has also committed to ensuring that more comprehensive information is available through its website.
	Cultural tourism will continue to form part ofthe marketing strategy in the USA and part of the forthcoming Smithsonian Folklife Festival in July 2007.

Ulster Scots Agency

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the Northern Ireland Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure imposed any conditions on the job specification and job advertisement for the current chief executive of the Ulster Scots Agency.

Lord Rooker: Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure officials consulted the Ulster Scots Agency to agree a job specification and job advertisement for the CEO post when it was last advertised.

Ulster Scots Agency

Ulster Scots Agency

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether, since the creation of the Ulster Scots Agency, any job advertisements for that agency were agreed by the Northern Ireland Department of Culture Arts and Leisure; and, if so, for which positions.

Ulster Scots Agency

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by Lord Rooker on 22 March (WA 250—2) concerning the funding of the Ulster Scots Agency, by when they propose that the Ulster Scots Agency will have parity of funding with the Irish Language Agency as envisaged in the Belfast Agreement in 1998.

Ulster Scots Agency

Ulster Scots Agency

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether the Ulster Scots Agency develops its annual budget alongside the indicative budget which is supplied by the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure.

Ulster Scots Agency

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How the Ulster Scots Agency's annual indicative budget is developed; who is involvedin the process; whether there is outside consultation; and whether equality is a consideration.